Friday, May 28, 2010

OPINION: THE ULTIMATE ITEM

This is not so much an opinion as it is a shout-out to one of the greatest pieces of sports memorabilia ever offered to the buying public. And that's not an understatement.

If you have not heard by now, the jersey that was worn by Paul Henderson when he scored what has become the most iconic goal in hockey is up for auction.

The 1972 Summit Series between the Canadians and Russians has become the stuff of legends. Anyone who is a hockey fan has seen or heard of the goal.

For those who haven't, get out from under your rock and enjoy.

You couldn't script it any better. The series was tied 3 games a piece (with a tie in the mix), the game was tied late in the third and it was a dramatic goal with an equally dramatic call.

I only wish I was alive at the time to have witnessed the fever pitch Canada was in at that moment.

Well, now you can own a piece of that moment. THAT JERSEY...THAT JERSEY is up for auction.

Described by the auction house as "the most significant artifact in the history of the game of hockey." And with the exception of the Stanley Cup itself, the claim may well be true.

Get your chequebook out though - it'll be a pricey piece of history. The starting price set for the jersey....$10,000.

Strong interest in the Henderson jersey had already driven online bidding past the $130,000 mark - that's right $130,000!!! And there's still more than three weeks of bidding ahead of the June 22 closing of the auction.

President Marc Juteau of Classic Auctions (the company auctioning off the item) has said that he expects the jersey's final price to rival the record-setting $191,000 Cdn paid earlier this year at a U.S. auction for a Bobby Orr jersey from the legendary player's 1966-67 rookie season with the Boston Bruins.

"I've known where this item has been for about the past 20 years," said Juteau, describing the owner of the Henderson jersey as a major American collector of hockey memorabilia who wishes to remain anonymous. "It took him about a year to decide whether to put it up for auction or to sell it, so it's been a slow process."

Henderson originally gave the sweater as a gift to Joe Sgro, the Toronto Maple Leafs trainer and equipment manager during the 1970s, who later sold it to a Canadian collector. The jersey was purchased by its current American owner about four years ago.

The Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto possesses another Henderson jersey from the '72 series — the darker, mainly red one used in the four games played in Canada before the two all-star teams travelled to Moscow for games 5 to 8.

Who will be the lucky person to own this piece of history? What will they do with it? Lock it away? Donate it to the HHOF for all to enjoy?

How about this one....cut it up into little itty-bitty pieces and put them onto hockey cards. I've heard of people doing this sort of thing before.

What would you say if the jersey was cut up? What do you think should happen to it ultimately? How much do you think it will go for?

3 comments:

I don't know about cutting it up. To me -- an American with a bit of Canadian blood (PEI) in him -- that would be sacrilegious. Something as historic as that really ought to be donated to the Hockey Hall of Fame, in exchange for free lifetime admission, or, at the least, in the hands of a Canadian collector.